The Day That Started It All
by 808Lionfire
Summary: Lucy was always considered a 'Lucky' girl, even when she was young. In reality, things never really went her way. One day, she gets barreled over by a pink haired boy, caught up in a dispute that had nothing to do with her. Not only gets lost, but also is a victim of a run away carriage. But hey, that's the day that started it all. (Loosely based off of the OVA-Memory Days)
1. Chapter 1

**Summary:** Lucy was always considered a 'Lucky' girl, even when she was young. She thought otherwise. Even long before she joined Fairy Tail, things never really went her way. One day, after accompanying her father on one of his trips, she gets barreled over by a pink haired boy, caught up in a dispute that had nothing to do with her. Not only gets lost, but also is a victim of a run away carriage. But hey, that's the very day that started it all.

**A/N: This plot I imagined had taken place during Lucy's childhood. Right around the time she was saved by a mysterious mage from Fairy Tail which caused her unhealthy obsession to joining said guild. The ending portion was taken within the OVA '_Memory Days_' time period.**

**Of course I know that his hadn't happened exactly, but it's basically what I thought did :**

**Disclaimer: Characters (setting, plot, etc.) within Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima and their rightful animators. **

_The Day That Started It All_

Deep in Fiore, at the heart of the Heartfilia Property, a tiny blonde haired child around the age of eleven, picked at the wild daisies that grew in the lawn. Her smile was wide as she hummed a nostalgic tune. Behind her was a tanned man with six, rather large crab legs that protruded from his back. A permanent, concentrated frown etched his lips as he pushed his yellow tinted sunglasses higher on his nose. His hands professionally weaved the child's hair into different styles before he gathered half of the golden strands, gently pulling them to the side and tying it off with a pink ribbon.

The blonde child paused in her work and turned her head to look at the man over her shoulder.

"The usual?" She asked sweetly, her bright brown eyes filled with curiosity.

"Are you not satisfied, Ebi?" The man asked, his frown deepening in concern.

"No, no!" The girl quickly denied, a sweet smile pulling at her lips. "I love it, Cancer-san." Her smile turned a little bittersweet, "Just like how Mama used to do it."

"Thank you, Ebi. You can call me Cancer," The tanned man corrected gently and then bowed gratefully, the pair of scissors glinting in the orange glow of the setting sun. The blonde child frowned in confusion and Cancer had noticed this, "You are my owner Lucy-sama, I do not need honorifics, Ebi."

"I will be your friend, not your owner," The girl, Lucy, returned in a slightly harder tone, "If I am going to call you Cancer, then you will also call me Lucy."

For a brief second, Lucy could have sworn she saw a small smile cross the Spirit's lips before disappearing quickly.

"I'm honored, Ebi."

"Lucy-sama!" A plump, elderly woman called from the edge of the clearing. Her hands cupped around her mouth so she could be heard. Lucy turned just in time to see a carriage pull up behind the woman. "Hurry! The Master says we are departing!"

"I'm coming, Spetto-san!" Lucy called back before accepting Cancer's offering hand to stand. "Thank you again, Cancer-sa-" The blonde cut herself off, blushing as she lightly dusted her dress, "Cancer. Thank you. You may go back now."

"I'll be waiting for your call, Lucy," Cancer announced before bowing again, his body disappearing into bright, golden flecks. Lucy smiled gleefully as she patiently stood there, waiting.

She was not disappointed. Right before the spirit completely returned to the spirit world, he had uttered the one phrase she had so patiently anticipated; '_Ebi_'. Turning around at another one of Spetto's calls, the blonde child quickly sprinted towards her family's faithful servant. With a childishly wild smile, Lucy brushed her hands and gently brushed her bangs out of her eyes.

"Are you going to ride in the coach with us, Spetto-san?" Lucy asked, her eyes brimming with curiosity.

"I shall be sitting up front, with the driver. You shall sit alone," Spetto paused and smiled warmly, her eyes gleaming hopefully, "With the Master."

The blonde child smiled and nodded obediently, but as she turned away, her smile saddened. Clasping her hands in front of her, she silently stepped up to the wooden vehicle. The young girl purposely chose to bitterly ignore the last part of Spetto's sentence.

_Because either way_, Lucy rationalized sullenly, _It would not make a difference_.

"Spetto," A stern voice firmly stated from inside the carriage.

"Y-yes, Jude-sama," Spetto hesitantly stuttered out.

The servant straightened immediately and grasped the handle and opened the door slowly. She gently led the blonde child into the dark cabin before shutting the door, blocking out what little light was inside of the carriage. Never knowing why, her father always hid behind the curtains of the carriage. Unless they traveled by moonlight, she had not once ridden with her father and enjoyed the scenery as they flew past.

"Lucy," Her father's deep voice grated as the young heiress settled close to the door, "I expect you to behave accordingly when we reach Mangolia tomorrow."

"Of course, Father," Lucy replied obediently.

Even in the darkness, she could see her father tiredly rubbing the bridge of his nose. It was times like these when Lucy actually worried for her father's health. Despite their rocky relationship since Layla, Lucy's mother, had died, she still concerned herself of her father's wellbeing. However, advances on such weren't taken well.

"Father, are you unwell-"

"Lucy!" Jude cut his daughter off harshly.

The blonde child flinched back, both parties stiffening at the pregnant silence that followed. The older blond let out a long sigh before he spoke again.

"Lucy," he ordered, forcing his tone to soften, "No talking. I need nothing but silence."

In response, the blonde child downcast her eyes and forced herself to do as her father said. The silence was incredibly suffocating and tense, but inevitable. Despite the small, surprised squeals that were caused by rough terrain, the entire ride to the outskirts of Magnolia was quiet. Neither had gotten much rest during the travel and continuously sat in the boredom of silence. However, Lucy was able to secretly watch both the orange hue of the sunset and the pink blush of the sunrise before having to close the curtains completely.

Other than that, the duration of the trip was entirely uneventful.

"We are here," The Coachman called from the front of the carriage, however, Lucy considered the announcement unnecessary.

She could hear the bustling noise of the town long before the driver had spoken. She only waited in anticipation to step out and completely enjoy an entirely different experience to the meaning of 'busy'. Compared to the urgent rush of the servants in her home, this was warmly welcomed.

"Spetto," Jude nodded as he passed the servant.

The carriage rocked as the man swept out with the gracefulness that only he could pursue. Meanwhile, Lucy wiggled in her seat, kicking her feet back and forth in uncontainable joy. She would make the most of her childish excitement while her father's presence has temporarily left. Spetto had closed the door on her but she could hear the low murmurs between her father and her dearest servant. She knew better, they were definitely talking about her.

"Lucy-sama," Spetto called, opening the door.

Lucy found that her father was currently walking into a building, away from the carriage. Meaning, she would be staying inside of the cabin until they reached the hotel they were staying at.

_Yeah, I don't think so_.

"Yes, Spetto-san?" Lucy replied sweetly, her eyes thinning at the heavy contrast in lighting.

"We are going to head towards the Hotel now," The elderly woman smiled.

"Okay," The blonde child smiled back, "Thank you, Spetto-san."

Spetto's heart both warmed and broke at the young girl's immediate obedience, "Do you want me to sit inside with you?"

"It's okay, Spetto-san," Lucy shook her head, her smile still on her face, "It's only a short ride right?" The servant nodded. "Then I'll be okay. Thank you."

"If you say so," Spetto muttered hesitantly before closing the door.

Lucy's smile dropped immediately. She waited until she felt the rocking of the carriage, indicating that Spetto was climbing on, before she swiftly stood up and walked towards the opposite side of the cabin. The Coachman clicked his tongue right as Lucy pulled the door open and slipped out quietly. The clack of the horses hooves easily concealed the already silent click of the door and the tap of the young heiress's sandals as it hit the cobbled sidewalk.

The horses to the carriage whined loudly, causing the blonde to freeze up. When neither the carriage or the horses stopped, she silently let out a cheer, spreading her arms up in her accomplishment. However, it was short lived when she was suddenly barreled over. There was a flash of pink, white and red before her vision temporarily blacked out. When she regained her vision, she swore that she had seen stars shining in the vast, blue sky.

"Owie," a clearly male, albeit high pitched, voice complained.

Sitting up quickly, Lucy's brown eyes locked on a boy sitting on the floor next to him. What immediately stood out wasn't the fact that he was obviously the culprit that knocked them both over, nor was it the fact that he seemed to be around the same age as her. Or the fact that the red flash earlier was his shirt and the white was his scarf. Even the fact that he was wearing a _scarf_ in this kind of heat! No. All of that slipped her mind. What she immediately took notice of was his hair.

And it was _pink_. Pink!

_Of all the colors in Earthland!_ Lucy thought as she rubbed the sore spot on the back of her head.

Sure she had met some blunettes, red heads. Heck! Even green haired people! But this pink haired boy seemed to strike her to silence. In her defense, she met people with pink hair, but they were usually girls. And even if they weren't, guys _dyed_ their hair that color. This looked extremely natural.

The boy must have noticed her staring at his hair because his, equally pink, eyebrows furrowed down. He must have taken her silence and her staring at his hair badly because he jabbed his index finger in her direction.

"My hair is _Salmon_," he inquired, pointing his finger at her. Lucy just reared back, her eyes skeptical. "Not Pink!"

Lucy's hands shot up into a 'no-shoot' gesture. However, before she could even open her mouth to say something, another boy, thankfully with normal dark hair, ran towards them. His eyes were filled with urgency that Lucy had never experienced. The blonde, once again, found herself rearing back in surprise when the dark haired boy stopped by them and hit the _salmon_ haired boy on the head. The force was enough to cause the boy to crumple forward, holding the spot that the dark haired boy hit.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch!"

"What are you doing sitting here, molten for brains?" The dark haired boy hissed angrily.

The salmon haired boy stood up quickly, his eyes narrowing in fury. Lucy could see a hint of confusion in his eyes. Confusion may have not been the right word. This boy seemed a little lost at what the dark haired boy said, which in turn, confused the blonde. But that confusion was quickly lost in what the salmon haired boy said next.

"I don't know what 'molten' means but it sounds like an insult!"

"Why am I not surprised?" The dark haired boy sighed before shrugging, "I forgot how much of an idiot you were."

"What'dya say?" The salmon haired boy asked furiously, the air heating up around them.

"You heard me, flame-brain!" The other boy hissed, the air around him dropping in temperature. "I forgot that you're such an idiot, I actually need to use insults that you can understand!"

"You wanna go?!"

"Yeah!"

As the two boys were butting heads, Lucy found herself strangely stuck between freezing and sweating. She had to feel her head to check if she was sick but found herself perfectly fine. She looked back at the two who were currently locked in combat, a cloud of dust flying around them. For some reason, she felt drained just by watching the pair.

"NATSU! GREY! PREPARE!"

The two immediately froze in their brawl, their eyes snapping over to someone in the distance. As the figure got closer, Lucy saw that this person was definitely somewhere around their ages. But once again, she couldn't help but stare. And for the _third_ time in the last thirty minutes, she found herself shocked into silence. Two things were definitely wrong about the girl that was heading towards them. Firstly, her hair was red. Not just any red, Crimson Red.

Secondly, she was clad in armor.

The girl's shoulders were covered with leather leaflets but her chest was completely covered with iron or some kind of hard metal. If it wasn't for that fact that she had long, girly hair, Lucy wouldn't have even noticed that she was female. Oh yeah, and she was completely immersed in a deadly aura. The blonde shivered in fear. Taking a quick glance at the boys, they were immediately locked into what seemed like a forced, friendly embrace.

"It's not working," the dark haired boy muttered softly, but Lucy heard it clearly.

"Why not?" The salmon haired boy muttered back, a shaky smile on his face, "What did you do this time, Ice princess?"

This immediately riled the dark haired boy. The temperature suddenly dropped again as he glared at the other boy. This caused the salmon haired boy to glare back and soon enough, they were butting heads again. Lucy was once again subjected to the shift in temperatures.

"What did I do?!" The dark haired boy hissed, "More like, what did you do?!"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Neither did I!"

"You must have done something really bad if our act didn't work!"

_Act_? Lucy questioned in her head before sighing again. _That must explain why they looked so friendly only seconds after they fought_.

"Wait!" The dark haired boy shouted, shocking both the forgotten Lucy and the salmon haired boy before glaring again, "Didn't you eat Ezra's cake?"

"No-" The salmon haired boy started to protest before he cut himself off and thought. "Oh yeah."

Lucy and the dark haired boy sweat-dropped. By this time, the red head, Ezra (Lucy assumed) was mere feet away from them. The deadly aura back then was nothing compared to the extremely dark aura she currently wore.

"Ah, crap!" The salmon haired boy cursed.

"Run!" The dark haired boy yelled, pushing the other boy before taking off quickly.

"Wait for me!" The salmon boy yelled, taking off after his... _friend_?

"YOU CAN'T RUN FOREVER! NATSU! GRAY!" The red haired girl yelled after them.

Lucy squeaked in surprise when a sword magically appeared in the red head girl's hand then ran after them. The blonde haired girl continued to sit on the cobble sidewalk, her eyes wide. She was beginning to think that the dark haired boy was the only normal one out of the dysfunctional group. Well... at least until he started to strip.

_Too soon_, Lucy thought through a sweat-drop, _Is everyone in Magnolia like this_?

As she looked around, there were people who looked scandalized at the scene that just materialized in front of them. Others looked amused and some just ignored it. A few people actually had the decency to ask if she was alright. One even walked over to her and help her up. That at least returned a little bit of faith back into the townspeople of Magnolia.

_Must just be them_, Lucy sighed, brushing off her dress. _It'd probably be better if I just pretended this never happened_.

The blonde used both hands and gently slapped her cheeks. She dug into the pockets of her dress and found that she had a decent amount of jewels on her. At least enough to pay the carriage fare.

_This isn't how I imagined my day to turn out_, Lucy thought, making her way to the corner of the street._ Maybe I should just find my way to the hotel_...


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Second part. Yay! **

**Fun fact: This was originally supposed to be a one-shot but I thought it was a little too long, hence the fast update. **

**In the OVA, I don't exactly know when it was but I assume that it was after Lucy's mom died. Since, y'know, Lucy's mom died the same year the Dragons disappeared and Natsu was already a member of Fairy Tail. ****So this is last part to this two-shot. Of course some of the characters might be a little OOC but hey, it's my first Fanfic.**

**Disclaimer (Again): All characters (setting, plot, etc.) within Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima and their respective animators. I own nothing.**

* * *

><p><em>The Day That Started It All<em>

The setting sun cast Magnolia in a bright orange hue. The crowd grew thinner as residents scattered back to their homes and shops started to close.

It took a little while but Lucy was able to eventually flag a carriage to her. The large horses spluttered in front of her as the surprisingly elegant cabin squealed to a stop. The Coachman looked down at her. The only way Lucy could describe this man was that he was quite plump. He seemed to purse his lips, furrowing his dark eyebrows in contemplation. Lucy, however, placed her hands on her hips and looked right back at the man. Just like how her father would have done.

"I don't know if I can properly let you pay me, little one," He commented at the minor that stood with the aura of an adult.

"I have the money, mister," Lucy replied in a steady tone, shocking the man further. "It is also getting quite dark. I assume even a man like yourself wouldn't leave a willing and paying costumer behind when service seems to be dying."

"Now why would you think that?" The man asked, a little offended. Lucy raised an eyebrow at that. The man had to admit, despite being around eleven years old, the little girl had the intimidation of a man in his prime. Added to the fact that this girl had quite a vocabulary.

"Don't be offended, mister," The blonde child replied in the grace of her father. "I just meant that you were desperate enough to stop for a child like myself. That must mean you either had a slow day or that you wanted to haggle me enough to where I would pay your fare and get a little extra for the last customer effort. I assume that you are a good man and that it wasn't the latter."

"O-of course," The man stuttered out before quickly clambering off and opening the door to the cabin. "Please, step in. Consider this ride a gift."

"Absolutely not," Lucy replied as she climbed in, "I'll pay you for you efforts. I may be a child but even I know that every man needs his pay."

"Th-thank y-you, miss," The Coachman bowed gratefully before closing the door quickly and seating himself up from. "And to where?"

Lucy quickly quickly tried to remember the name of the Hotel Spetto said they would currently be taken residency. However, she kept returning with a blank. By then, the carriage had already traveled a few blocks forward. Lucy sighed in disappointment before sadly relaying to the man that she didn't know. He tried to ask a few questions to jog her memory but she couldn't come up with the name. In a last minute decision, she asked the man to take her back to where he picked her up since that was where her Father was currently working.

She apologized again but promised to give the man the full fare. He hadn't argued this time.

The sun was slowly disappearing off on the horizon, which left Lucy a little disappointed. When she could finally ride in a carriage with her windows up, the sun had to be setting. Letting out a little disgruntled sigh, she pressed her head against the wooden walls of the carriage. The streets in Magnolia was definitely softer than the dirt trodden paths between the cities.

The blonde child was beginning to fall asleep at the comfortable rocking of the carriage but then there was a yell and then panic erupted.

There was a bright flash light that shot across the front of the carriage, like a fireball or a comet as it streaked into a unknowing shop. The Coachman yelled out in surprise as the horses jostled around. The wall, that had been resting against Lucy's face, suddenly left the comfort of the blonde child's forehead before quickly slamming back. For the second time that day, Lucy felt her eyes darken out for a quick second.

When she came to, all she could hear was screams around her as the carriage suddenly picked up speed.

"Um, excuse me?" Lucy called out to the front. "Excuse me?!"

When she heard no reply, she cautiously scrambled to the seats in front of her to peek out the window that separated the driver from the cabin. A small panicked, slightly terrified, gasp escaped the blonde's mouth. The Coachman was no longer on the carriage. Meaning, the horses were on a rampage with no driver driving them. The Coachman must have tumbled off when the horses tipped the coach.

"Someone! Please Help!"

Lucy scrambled back to her seat just as she heard the familiar voice of the Coachman yell out. She looked back to she the man scrambling after her, hand stretched out as if that would help him catch the runaway carriage. She clutched the seat in fear as she stared straight out the window. Both luckily and unluckily, she could hear every word the Coachman cried.

"The horses are out of control!" He yelled out. A female screech reached her ears as she saw a girl in a bunny outfit narrowly escape the runaway carriage. Lucy closed her eyes fearfully. The Coachman's voice reached her once more, "There's a customer inside the coach!"

"Eh?!" A woman's voice asked in surprise before taking after the carriage, her feet slapping against the road as she tried to desperately catch up with it. "Wait up!" Hope instantly filled Lucy's chest as she heard the woman quickly close the gap between them. "Just a... Just a little more...!" After a grunt of effort, the blond could safely say that the woman had successfully climbed onto the carriage.

The woman yelled out as the carriage sharply turned at the bend, crashing through merchant tents and narrowly brushing past other patrons. Lucy was pretty sure they ran into at least a dozen boxes of eggs but she wasn't sure. Lucy continued to squeeze her eyes shut as the woman, her savior apparently, let out a noise of disgust.

"Why am I doing something like this?" She heard the woman ask herself in almost disbelief.

_I don't know, but please keep doing it_! The blonde child couldn't help but cry in her mind. However, her mouth actually decided to form words, "Please help me! I'm really scared!"

"A kid?" The woman contemplated out loud before crying out when the horses turned sharply again. "Please hold on," the woman grunted, "I'll stop it now!"

Lucy's eyes snapped opened in relief, the tears pooling in her eyes but never falling. "Who are you?"

The blonde child assumed the woman hadn't heard her due to the scream she let out before speaking again.

"Please stay calm!"

Lucy heard clambering on the roof so she stayed quiet. Placing both hands on the side window, she looked out fearfully. Praying to every Celestial being out there. She just wanted to make it out of this in one piece. The woman's shout snapped her out of her thoughts as her head quickly snapped to the front. As if in slow motion, the woman dropped from the top of the carriage onto the driver's seat.

She should have been surprised that the person who was saving her was the bunny girl that narrowly dodged the carriage. But like every other obvious things she hadn't noticed today, time slowed and she noticed the pink insignia that adorned bunny girl's right hand. Lucy's cheeks heated up, falling in love with both the color and the overall shape itself and committed the image to memory.

"There we go," Her savior muttered. The horses pulled away from the carriage as the vehicle started to slow down but they were still a long way from stopping. However, that hadn't stopped the bunny girl from cheering, "I did it!"

By the time the carriage slowed down to a stop, the stars had popped out and they were near the cliff overlooking the city of Magnolia. The bunny girl sighed in relief as she slumped against the plump seats. Lucy even had to take a long breath of relief after realizing that she was holding it for too long. Finally, she felt she could breathe freely.

"Hey, you. Are you okay?" The bunny girl asked curiously.

"Yes," The blonde child replied, relieved. "Thank you very much. How about you, Onee-chan?"

"Yeah," The bunny girl breathed, "I'm okay." Silence hung between the two for a moment before the older girl decided to speak again, "Where are you going at this time of night?"

"My papa's place," Lucy replied, only giving the girl half of the truth. Originally, she was going to the Hotel they were staying at, but she forgot the name of it. Her savior didn't need to know that though.

"Oh, I see," The bunny girl said in a tone that meant she actually understood what she meant, "I always went to my papa's workplace as well."

"You too, Onee-chan?" Lucy asked.

"Mm," the older girl replied before nodding, "When I was small-"

The girl cut herself off as the commotion behind them started to get louder. Quickly, both girls realized that it was people and a large cloud of dust flying behind them as they practically raced to them. The group consisted of the townspeople of Magnolia and, what Lucy could see, Spetto-san as well. The elder woman was leading the mob, surprisingly. Their eyes were wide with raw panic, awe and confusion.

"What?" One man cried out. "Bunny-chan? Is this a joke?"

"Oh no!" The bunny girl cried, "Sorry! But I gotta go!"

"Um!" Lucy cried as she clambered out of the coach quickly but bunny girl seemed to have taken off already. There was only a thin trail of dust in her wake as she ran as fast as she could.

"Lucy Ojou-sama!" Spetto cried, using her rightful honorific since there were more than just her servants around.

"Oh!" Lucy called back, surprised, "Spetto-san!"

"You ran away from us again!" The elderly woman huffed as she stopped in front of the blonde child. Lucy had the decency to look apologetic as she remembered escaping from her family's carriage.

"I'm sorry."

"The Master is very busy with work you know?" Spetto scolded, waving her finger up and down. The servant assumed that she escaped to see her father. She knew of Lucy's desperate attempts to solidify what was left of their relationship. "Even if you go to see him..."

Lucy couldn't hear the rest of what Spetto said though because she was distracted at the building far off in the distance. Her heart thudded excitedly as her eyes took in the insignia hanging on the banner. Her eyes widened in pure joy as she turned back to Spetto with anxious eyes.

"Spetto-san," Lucy cut off the woman, immediately gaining Spetto's attention from her rant, "What is that mark?"

"O-oh," Spetto stuttered, "That is the mark of the magician's guild that's in this town; Fairy Tail."

Lucy suddenly had a flashback to the slow motion moment where bunny girl's hand proudly portrayed the same, exact version of the Fairy Tail guild mark. Despite the fact that it was pink. The blonde child's eyes shined in wonderment. She couldn't believe it. Her savior was from this town! From Fairy Tail no less!

"Fairy Tail, huh?" She whispered excitedly. It was that moment where Lucy's love for the guild and her obsession to joining it started.

* * *

><p>"LUCY! <em>LUCY<em>!" Four different voices cried out, snapping the Celestial mage out of her flashback.

Blinking rapidly, her eyes refocused into the scene currently in front of her. She hadn't know why that memory suddenly played back in her mind. It could have been spurred by suddenly going back to the time when her partner, Natsu, got that scar on his neck (she honestly felt a little disappointed, it was a cool scar but the reasoning behind it wasn't). Or it could have been the fact that wearing a bunny suit reminded her of her savior from so long ago. She giggled to herself quietly.

_The day that started it all_, Lucy couldn't help but think fondly.

Shaking the thought out of her head, Lucy returned her attention to the moment she was currently sitting in. Currently, she was in the Fairy Tail 2.0 guild hall, sitting at one of the wooden tables. A blue cat, sorry exceed, was directly in front of her and she focused on him first. Her eyes darted to the left of the cat and she found herself caught in the concerned gaze of one of her dearest friend and nakama, Gray Fullbuster. The Ice make mage frowned at her dazed state before grinning. His dark hair fell from his forehead.

"Welcome to the world of the living," He teased, chuckling under his breath.

Lucy sent him a dry look, "Thanks."

Her eyes then darted to the right of the blue exceed, landing on another one of her dearest nakama. The red-head of a woman who probably could scare her the most, Erza Scarlett. Her friend eyed her worriedly, her armor clicking together as she shifted in her seat. Once she saw that Lucy was definitely in her right mind, she smiled. A small laugh escaped the red-head's lips before she settled down and started to eat her strawberry cake.

"You had me worried," Erza sighed, bowing her head. "Feel free to hit me in retribution."

"A-ah, that's okay!" Lucy denied instantly, waving her hands to refuse.

Lastly, she turned her gaze directly to her right to the person who was probably the closest to her. Both figuratively and literally. Lucy definitely had to shy back a couple of inches, her face flushing. She caught herself in the act and quickly looked towards the blue exceed, hoping that he hadn't seen that. However, the feline was already pressing his paws against his lips, holding back a giggle. _Oh Happy_, the celestial mage thought with a sigh, _Here it comes_.

"You liiiiiiike him~"

A vein ticked on her forehead but before Lucy could reached out her hand to grab the cat but he quickly flew away, "You stupid cat!"

Lucy froze, forgetting about the spiky, pink -sorry _salmon_, hired partner. Like she noted before, he is most likely the closest nakama that she held to her heart. He's the one and only, as she is so often reminded, Salamander A.K.A. Fire Dragon Slayer A.K.A. Natsu Dragoneel. Lucy quickly dared to take a look at her salmon haired partner who was, by the way, still looking at her. He propped his chin on his hand as his dark, almost onyx, eyes bore into her.

"W-what?" Lucy asked, feeling her cheeks heat up but ignored it, "Aren't you going to say something too?"

Natsu, however, gave his blonde partner one of his famous fanged grins, thus forcing his eyes to close gleefully. Such a boyish slash childish grin that the celestial mage had come to terms with. Dare she say, came to love. Her body slowly relaxed as she assumed the Dragon Slayer wouldn't do anything except smile at her. In a way, it was as equally nerve-wreaking. But, she should have known better. Like in her flashback, she relaxed a little too soon.

The Fire Dragon Slayer's grin somehow widened, "You're so weird, Luce."

"Yeah," Lucy sighed, sweat-dropping, "Thanks."

"So we actually figured out how Flame-brain got the scar on his neck," Gray chuckled, diverting the attention away from the blonde. Natsu shuddered at the memory. "I was kind of hoping for something actually worth telling."

"What'dya say, Ice princess?" Natsu growled, slapping his hand on the table.

Lucy sweat-dropped again, remembering a extremely similar moment. It was years ago and she absolutely promised herself she would forget it, however, it suddenly replayed through her mind. The temperature around Natsu picked up as his fist burst into flames while the temperature around Gray dropped below freezing.

"You heard me, Flame-brain!" Gray hissed, standing up. Natsu followed quickly. "The way you got that scar is stupid! And you know it!"

"You wanna go?!"

"Yeah!"

"NATSU! GRAY! ARE YOU FIGHTING?!"

"N-no!" Gray stuttered.

"W-we're best of friends!" Natsu said, his voice too stiff to be believable, "R-right, Ice- G-Gray?"

Lucy watched the next scene in horror. In the boy's desperate attempt to hook their arms around each other in their act of companionship, they completely forgot that there was at least a table width between them. Thus resulting in Gray's arm to slip off Natsu's shoulder and accidentally push the Dragon Slayer away to catch himself. Natsu suddenly fell forward and practically crushed poor Happy under his chest.

And_ that_ resulted in Happy losing paw hold of the fish he was currently eating, causing the fish to clip into the corner of Erza's plate. Basically, that tipped the delicious, half-eaten cake right off the table. Erza's fist clenched so hard, it bent under the pressure. Lucy could feel herself bending under the pressure of Ezra's deadly aura.

Everyone froze. There was a brief moment of silence before chaos ensued.

"NATSU! GRAY! PREPARE YOURSELVES!"

The Re-equip mage summoned her sword and quickly Re-equipped her armor into what was famously dubbed, 'The Knight'. Lucy squealed in panic before she dutifully slipped the unconscious Happy from under their partner's chest and cowered in the corner. Within seconds, the whole guild seemed to take a part in the brawl. Lucy sighed, holding her head between her hands and shaking it in disbelief. Wondering what happened in the last two minutes.

"It's just them," Lucy uttered the familiar words, finally drawing to a conclusion. She whined pitifully, "This is not how I imagined my day to turn out."

"Aye," Happy pitched in, equally as pitiful, "That's Fairy Tail for you."

Lucy sighed, watching Mira, the white-haired Demon Take-over mage, and Wendy, the young Sky Dragon Slayer along with her white exceed, Carla, approach her with different shades of amusement in their eyes. They were probably the next closest nakama aside from Team Natsu. They helped the Celestial mage up and shook their heads in response.

"Yeah, Happy," Lucy sighed, "And you can't help but love them for it." The blonde haired mage smiled fondly at the destroyed guild before a vein ticked on her head, "BUT THEY'RE SERIOUSLY GOING TO DESTROY THE GUILD!"

"Aye, sir!"

"Don't 'Aye, sir'!"

Lucy couldn't help but slump, depressed. Another thing that Master Makarov can pin on their team. However, Lucy smiled, physically and mentally unable to regret any of it. Even though it's been years since the moment she decided to completely commit herself to Fairy Tail, they really hadn't changed since then. Since the day that started it all.


	3. Bonus Chapter

**A/N: Bonus Chapter! I wanted to give this story a proper ending since it is my first Fanfic :) (Added to the fact that this was the first story I actually decided to post and not regret) But yeah... Read on Fictioners!**

**Summary:** Lucy learns that there was more to that day than she realized. Well, not _that_ much. But at least she learns why she's called 'Bunny Girl' (by a certain Bluenette's Iron Dragon Slayer) and she is fondly reminded that not all was broken between her and father. That day wasn't how she imagined it happening but she would never regret the way that it did.

**Disclaimer: Fairy Tail (c) Hiro Mashima**

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><p><em>The Day That Started It All: Bonus Chapter<em>

The guild had finally settled down from their recent brawl.

_Thank Mavis_!

Erza had gotten another cake, thankfully calming the red-head from doing any serious damages to the guild. Juvia (returning from a recent solo mission) practically dragged Grey into another one of her 'admiration' rants, blushing after she noticed he was in his boxers. And then Natsu... Lucy sweat-dropped. The blonde mage was sure he was going to start another brawl in seconds. Well... after he got up from his unconscious state that is.

According to Happy, the salmon haired boy was the first on Erza's 'Cake Retribution' list. Grey was next but Wendy intervened and offered Erza another strawberry cake. The Sky Dragon Slayer was confident that, with Natsu's hard head, he would have survived any one of the Re-equip mage's blows. The Ice Make mage was a different story. Anyway, Happy (Along with Lucy's effort) had managed to drag the unconscious Dragon Slayer over to a stool and sat him down.

Lucy slumped into the seat next to him and sadly look around the guild. Chairs, tables and plates were broken. Splinters of broken mugs were also scattered around the floor. Squinting her eyes, she was sure she saw Gajeel picking up the iron lining to a few of them and started eating it. A support beam or two were cracked, if not destroyed. Hell! Someone had even managed to break the railing to the second story!

She was glad Master Makarov had decided to step out in search of... whatever he was looking for.

At the rate they ('they' meaning Team Natsu and excluding herself) were destroying things, Lucy was sure that she would never get her rent money, possibly be kicked out onto the street and homeless! A dark, depressed aura enveloped the blonde at that thought. Like a few moments ago, she curled onto her seat and held her head between her hands. She would lie if she said she wasn't panicking. If push came to shove, Natsu and Happy would probably drag her to their house in efforts to right their wrongs.

"But that's even worse than being homeless!" Lucy muttered, sympathizing with her own train of thought.

"What's even worse than being homeless, Lu-chan?"

A sweet voice asked from in front of the blonde. Lucy looked up immediately and almost cried in relief when she saw Levy McGarden, her blue-haired best friend. The Celestial mage enveloped Levy from here she was sitting, burying her face into the bluenette's stomach.

"Levy-chan!" She cried happily, "Thank the Spirits you're here! Mavis knows that I need sanity right now."

"Gihi!" A chuckle resonated from the left of them, "Ain't that the truth!"

"Gajeel," Levy warned, wrapping her arms around her best friend.

The Iron Dragon Slayer smirked, "Can't blame me, Shrimp. Bunny Girl is the only one crazy enough to partner up with Salamander. He's an idiot."

"What was that?!" Natsu roared, jumping up from his seat and glaring at the other Dragon slayer.

Lucy shrieked, both from surprise (since the Fire Dragon Slayer was knocked out just a second ago) and worry (because obviously she was correct in assuming the salmon haired boy would try to fight the second he got up). Gajeel scowled instantly, standing straighter to try and intimidate the shorter male. But who was he kidding? This was Natsu they were talking about! He rarely gets scared, much less being intimidated from the Iron Dragon Slayer himself. So in true Fairy Tail (or maybe Dragon Slayer?) nature, they butted heads, glaring into each other's eyes.

"I'm only speaking the truth!" Gajeel replied in a rough tone. "Bunny Girl is going to go crazy if she stays partnered up with you!"

"I don't care about that!" Natsu growled, "You called me an Idiot!"

"Is that are you care about Salamander?!" Gajeel shouted out, a flash of surprise crossing his eyes.

"Yeah! So what?!"

Lucy sweat-dropped along with Levy and Gajeel. The Iron Dragon Slayer sighed tiredly, rubbing the skin between his eyes. Let it be Natsu to make a point like that. It didn't surprise them, even if it hurt just a little in Lucy's case. Because honestly, what did they expect?

"Nothing," Gajeel rolled his eyes, folding his arms across his chest, "You truly are an idiot, Salamander."

"I am not!"

"Right," the Iron Dragon Slayer snorted out a laugh, "You don't care about Bunny Girl's sanity even though she's your partner, supposedly."

Fury crossed Natsu's face as he glared hatefully at the taller male, "That's not true."

"Well, he's got a point," Lucy muttered under her breath, Levy nodded in agreement. The Fire Dragon Slayer whipped his gaze towards the blond, hurt crossing his features. "What?!" She asked, her eyes wide, "You're the one that said it the first place! I was just agreeing with what you said!"

"C'mon, Luce. You know I didn't mean it like that."

"Gihi," Gajeel smirked, enjoying the groveling the salmon haired boy was doing right now. "You know Salamader's stupidity makes him speak without thinking- oof!"

"Shut up, Gajeel," Levy muttered, retracting her elbow from where she jabbed the Dragon Slayer in the stomach. Gajeel gave the short girl a half-hearted glare, cradling his arms around his midsection. "Like you're one to talk. You were just using what he said earlier to rile him up."

Natsu slumped into the seat next to Lucy. A dejected and abandoned look took over his features when he finally figured out that Lucy wasn't accepting any of his apologies. The blonde rolled her eyes, crossing her legs and watching the exchange between the Iron Dragon slayer and The Script mage. She let a small smile slip at their constant bickering. They were talking low but she caught some words such as 'Idiot' and 'Bunny Girl'.

"I've been wondering," Lucy spoke up, catching the attention of the three around her but her focus was on the Iron Dragon Slayer, "Why do you call me 'Bunny Girl'?"

Gajeel frowned at the question. She just assumed that he was thinking about it because the Dragon Slayer frowns more frequently than he smiles. Levy tilted her head and clasped her hands behind her back as she stared questioningly at the male. Natsu glanced at his blonde partner before turning his gaze, leaning against the table and stretching his arms against the length of the wood. He wanted to hear the answer to that as well.

"Not sure," Gajeel shrugged uncaringly, "I guess you remind me of her."

Levy frowned, narrowing her eyes, "Who is 'her'?"

"Ah, well," the Iron Dragon Slayer mumbled, scratching his cheek, "I don't know, but she was some kind of savior, apparently."

"So why'd you pair her up with Luce?" Natsu asked in a grumble, reverting quickly to his old self. "It's not like she saved anyone yet," he mumbled softly, but Lucy caught that and slapped the back of his head. "I said yet!"

"I can honestly tell you that I have but you didn't let him finish!" Lucy exclaimed, exasperated, "He never said that I reminded him of her because she was a savior, Idiot! He was just answering Levy-chan's question!"

"Tch." Nastu rolled his eyes, settling back against the table.

"Anyways," Lucy shot the Fire Dragon Slayer a glare before turning back to Gajeel, "Please continue. Why do I remind you of her?"

"Ugh," Gajeel groaned in annoyance, shooting a look at Levy who was nudging him to speak. "Fine, whatever," he grumbled, "You're blond, she was blond. She had a big chest, you have a big ch- Oof!"

Gajeel shot a glare at the three around him. Levy had, once again, elbowed him in the stomach, her eyes glaring at him. Lucy roughly extended her leg and dug her heel into his foot in irritation. Natsu had shot out his foot swiftly, catching the Iron Dragon Slayer's leg. In retribution, he kicked Natsu back and pinched both of the girls' cheeks until they swatted his hands away.

"Where the hell did you even meet this girl?" Lucy grumbled as she rubbed her cheek, tears pricking at the corners of her eye. Levy was doing the same but she was rubbing the opposite cheek, an extremely defiant look on her face. Natsu just glared daggers at the Dragon Slayer, refraining from attacking him because of the the sharp, unforgiving look Lucy gave him.

"It was years ago," Gajeel shrugged, smirking at all of them. Mostly at the other Dragon Slayer.

"When?" Levy asked, her eyes turning curious.

The Iron Dragon Slayer shrugged, "Back when I first joined Phantom Lord. Doesn't matter." He dared to look at the bluenette that stared up at him, expectantly waiting for more. He frowned, "That's it. I'm not sayin' anymore."

"You can't just stop there!" Levy protested, "You already opened up the can of beans, you might as well eat them!"

"I agree with Levy on this one," Natsu grinned, enjoying the hesitant look on the Iron Dragon Slayer's face. He grinned even wider when Gajeel shot a hateful look towards him. Lucy giggled behind her hand, not that she would admit it, but she also kind of enjoyed the Dragon's Slayer's expressions when it came to her blue-haired best friend.

"See!" Levy exclaimed, looking pointedly at Gajeel, "Even Natsu agrees! It's _Natsu_ for Mavis's sake!"

"Hey!"

"Fine," Gajeel growled roughly, conceding. Levy cheered happily along with Lucy while Natsu smirked secretly. Gajeel shot a look at Levy, "Might as well as sit down, Shrimp. This might take a while."

The bluenette nodded quickly, stealing the seat on the other side of Lucy and snuggled up against her best friend. Frowning at the warmth taking up the space behind Lucy, Levy shot a look at Natsu before gripping his arm and pushed it back towards him. The Fire Dragon Slayer rolled his eyes but settled for crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"It's not much of a story that you're thinking," Gajeel started, "But whatever. It was when I just joined Phantom lord, Jose brought me along for one of his business trips. He needed a body guard or something. At the time, I was twelve or thirteen, who knows. Jose told me to stay in the shadows while he talked to this man, told me that if he needed my help he'd call me. He explained to me that the man we were meeting was extremely rich and if we got him on our side, we would become the richest and strongest guild in Fiore. Turns out, we ended up in Magnolia."

"We settled into the room that we was going to do the negotiations and it turns out that the man, James, or whatever his name was, was already there. He was a tall man, blond hair and a blond mustache, a bit buff. He was wearing an expensive looking suit, not sure the color though. All I could say about him was that he spent most of the conversation looking out the large window and down towards the street. When I got a really good look at his face, he seemed tired but he was staring fondly at something or someone on the streets. When I looked, all I could see was a few people. But what stood out was the lone, little blond child talking to a carriage driver before climbing in by herself."

"It wasn't until the carriage turned out of sight before the man turned to Jose, his face emotionless. They talked for a few minutes more, relief was on Jose's face when the man agreed to sign the agreement contract. He was halfway through signing the paper before there was an explosion and a lot of people yelling. I don't know why but the man seemed to panic then rushed towards the window. The carriage that I saw earlier was rampaging but instead of the carriage driver, I saw a blond woman in a bunny suit trying to untie the horses. When the horses were off, I could see the carriage slowing before the man pulled a communication lacrima out of his pocket and started to talk furiously to it. After that he rushed out of the doors. Jose was furious because he never finished signing the contract."

"Later that day, Jose vowed that he was going to stop at nothing to get, Jude or James or whatever the hell his name was to hand over the money that we needed to become the richest in Fiore. I don't know why it was so important though. I also learned that the woman in the bunny suit saved the little girl I saw earlier and that the little girl was actually the daughter of the man we saw. When Jose learned that, he started to make plans to kidnap the kid for ransom but since the little girl was so confined in their heavily guarded mansion, Jose waited for the right chance. They kept on calling the girl's savior, 'Bunny-chan' or something. So I guess that's where I got it."

The three in front of him were shocked in silence, sometimes the same thought crossed their minds but they were all quiet for different reasons. Of course the whole story seemed a little far-fetched but it made sense... kind of. However, it wasn't until Lucy snapped out of her thoughts and ignored the nagging feeling in her chest and eyed the Iron Dragon Slayer curiously.

"What?" Gajeel asked annoyed, "I told you the reason why I called you 'Bunny Girl'. You three even forced out that stupid backstory. What else do you want?"

"No, no," Lucy shook her head, still staring at him curiously before a smirk pulled at her lips, "That's actually the most I heard you ever talk."

"Yeah," Levy agreed in awe, before turning to the Celestial mage, "He was a little OOC, don't you think?"

"Definitely," Lucy laughed, nodding her head quickly.

"Wow, Iron-face," Natsu smirked, "I didn't know you had it in you."

Gajeel scoffed, "Course I do. I'm not an idiot like you."

"What?" Natsu raged, quickly standing up and glaring flames at the other Slayer. "That's it! You've been getting away for saying that because of Lucy, but get ready because I'm about to kick your ass, chump!"

"Bring it Salamander!"

Lucy was too indulged in her and Levy's conversation that she wasn't able to attempt to stop the flaming fist Natsu aimed at Gajeel. When she actually felt Natsu's presence disappear from her side, she whipped her head to see almost the whole guild in another tussle. She shrieked and Levy gasped when a stool flew between the two of them. The two girls sweat-dropped at the continuous destruction that this guild has seen. Levy turned away and tried to ignore them, pulling out an emergency book that she always kept on her when situations like this arose.

Lucy quickly stood up, knowing that her blue haired friend would be fine if she was left alone. Then she tried to find Erza to try and pacify the situation but quickly found out that the Re-equip mage had already joined the brawl. Surprisingly, it wasn't because someone dropped her cake. No, she joined in because it was a 'healthy relationship if friends can freely battle'.

Not wanting to deal with anymore of the guild, she decided to head home. Not even caring when Happy floated out right behind her and landed on her shoulder.

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><p>It wasn't until around the third or fourth time Lucy had kicked Natsu and Happy out of her apartment when what Gajeel said clicked into her mind.<p>

Laying on her bed (alone thankfully), she frowned at the ceiling. _Phantom Lord_. _Rich blonde man. Bunny-chan. Ransom. Runaway carriage. Lone blonde kid. Rich man's daughter. Savior_.

The blonde's thoughts were everywhere. She finally tied off that Bunny-chan was definitely the woman that had saved her when she was younger. Meaning that the rich man that Jose was doing negotiations with was in fact, Jude Heartfilia and she was his daughter... That explained why Jose had kidnapped her to be held for ransom instead of giving her back like he was supposed to back when she first joined Fairy Tail. That also explains how her father knew Phantom Lord's master in the first place.

That lead her to think about when the Iron Dragon Slayer told them of how her father panicked when he saw her runaway carriage and how he looked out of the window at her the whole time since she escaped the family carriage.

_So he saw me escape_, Lucy thought, a lone tear slipping down her face, _He also saw me when I first met Natsu, Grey and Erza. He was worried for me but he didn't stop me..._

"Papa," the blonde whispered, more tears escaping her eyes.

Lucy reached up and pressed the heels of her palms against her eyes, trying to desperately stop the tears. A smile grew on her face but her tears continued to flow from sadness and happiness. Something deep in her told her that even though it seemed bad, he did think about her like how she hoped. And the fact that he hadn't stopped her inevitable fate made her feel like he was silently encouraging her dreams. So of course she cried. She cried like she hadn't in years, torn within the painstakingly beautiful melancholy before finally falling into a blissful rest.

It was barely midnight when she was gently jostled by actions that was purposely slow, in effort not to wake the blonde. However, she did wake up but kept her eyes closed, knowing immediately who it was. Instead of kicking the Dragon Slayer like how she always did, she curled into the warm, but tense body, feigning sleep. Slowly, the boy relaxed, releasing the tension in his body and settling himself more comfortably around the Celestial mage. Lucy accidentally let a small slip on her lips but Natsu had already slipped into unconsciousness, so he was unaware of it. Shaking her head in amused exasperation at her best friend, Lucy sighed before closing her eyes.

Of course, she promised herself to kick him out of her bed in the morning (then whip up a healthy helping of breakfast in apology) but enjoyed what unconscious comfort the boy provided. Unlike her father, Natsu had influenced and fulfilled her dreams verbally (And physically if she could count constantly being saved as one of her dreams).

Right before she fell back asleep, she silently thanked Grey, Erza and everyone else (in and out of Fairy Tail) that also helped in fulfilling her dreams. Then she served her separate murmurs of gratitude to Happy, her father and a certain persistent and stubborn Dragon Slayer.

And in reply, he smiled.

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><p><strong>AN: OMG! I'm done!**

**I really hoped that I ended that on a good note... my eyeballs are seriously hurting right now. I wrote all of this on a whim and one sitting so this is definitely not edited at all :)**

**And yes, I know that Gajeel doesn't call her Bunny Girl because of this nor does Jose really have a factor like that but I thought it was a fun spin on the plot. I also (I don't know why so don't quote me on this) believed that her father hadn't really hired Phantom Lord to kidnap Lucy. I always had it in my mind that Jude (Lucy's Dad) never went after her when she left was because he believed that wherever she was, she was happy and he silently cheered for that.**

**Forgive me if I never believed Lucy's dad to be purposely bad :)**

**I gotta give my eyeballs a rest now. See ya in the next one! -808Lionfire**


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